As for me, I am always touched by the powerful drama and saving truth of Holy Week. For better or for worse, though I suspect largely for the better, my father reflected deeply and profoundly on the sufferings and the triumph of Christ during his own battle with terminal cancer. My cruciform witness comes from a hospital bedside as much as from the hill of Golgotha.

In our interfaith dialogues at Worcester Polytechnic Institute we discussed the troubling violence and suffering that permeates Holy Week. However, I would suggest that these very real trials are precisely what make the gospel so relatable to people in great distress of their own.

The passion and perhaps even the seeming “reboot” of the resurrection make us uncomfortable, because it is uncomfortable! We are brought face to face with death, our mortality and a radical promise of life that contradicts every bit of logic. We are invited into the pattern of the Paschal Mystery and what a joy that is, tears, shouts, joy and all. Alleluia, Christ is Risen!

Today’s Gospel comes from St John’s account of the evening of Jesus’ betrayal. In this account, Jesus doesn’t institute the supper as a memorial or sacred meal in the way that Paul records it in 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, nor does it look like the meal described by the other Gospels. Rather, in John’s account the meal is the setting for the washing of his disciples’ feet, his betrayal by Judas, his commandment about loving one another, and so forth. What is so striking about this reading, though, is that the act that Jesus commands in the other accounts of the last supper – to receive bread – is the act by which Judas is singled out as the one who will betray Jesus. “[The one who will betray me] is the one to whom I give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.”

In what ways do we betray Jesus even as we go through the motions and gestures and practices of faith that seem so right and holy? How can the signs and symbols of our faith become signs and symbols of betrayal, or at the least empty gestures that do little point us to Christ? Rather than reject traditional gestures and practices, in these holy days commit yourself more deeply to them, so that you might find in them meaning and through their practice draw closer to Christ.

Let us pray:
Father in Heaven, as we prepare for your Son’s Holy Passion, prepare our hearts by your Spirit to receive Him with genuine faith and earnest hope for the coming of his Kingdom. Through your Son Jesus we pray. Amen.

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

Speak to the people of Israel and say to them: These are the appointed festivals of the Lord that you shall proclaim as holy convocations, my appointed festivals.

For six days shall work be done; but the seventh day is a sabbath of complete rest, a holy convocation; you shall do no work: it is a sabbath to the Lord throughout your settlements.

These are the appointed festivals of the Lord, the holy convocations, which you shall celebrate at the time appointed for them. In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, at twilight, there shall be a passover-offering to the Lord, and on the fifteenth day of the same month is the festival of unleavened bread to the Lord; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall not work at your occupations. For seven days you shall present the Lord’s offerings by fire; on the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation: you shall not work at your occupations.

The passage for today’s reading is the beginning of a series of Festivals that the Israelites were supposed to celebrate.  These festivals were the three listed today, as well as the Day of Atonement, Purim, Feast of Weeks, etc.  Wait a second did I just type three festivals listed today?  Aren’t there just two?

Well, no, not quite.  Take a look.  The first is the Sabbath.  The Sabbath was deemed to be a weekly “festival” of sorts.  It was a time when work was not supposed to be done, so that the family or individual could celebrate all that God has done in that person/persons life.  It was a moment to take time to thank God and rest with God’s word.  We often forget that many of these festivals revolved around celebrating the accomplishments of God.  The Sabbath would be included in that one.  God provided blessings throughout the week such as work, family, a home, etc.  The Sabbath was a time to recognize and thank God for those blessings through a focus on him rather than anything that might distract.  It was a time to rest too after a long week.

The second festival was Passover.  Celebrated as the text reads, the 14th day of the first month.  For those who were reading, the first month would be our March/April, don’t forget we are working from different calendars.  Many people when reading the Old Testament impose the Gregorian calendar onto the Old Testament calendar, when they would have been following a much different calendar as well as time passage.  But, back to the point.  Passover was a one day event where the people would celebrate and reflect on the freedom that they have been given by God from Egypt.  Again, it was a day to thank God for all that he did for their people.  It reminded the people about Moses and the gift of God.

The Festival of Unleavened Bread which was on the 15th of the month and lasted one week, was to celebrate the harvest of the year.  I originally thought it would be to celebrate the manna that was given in the desert, but it was a harvest festival.  The point was to thank God for all that he had provided from the ground.

Eventually, Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread would become one Festival.  We see this already in the time of Jesus.

So, what can we learn from this Leviticus text.  I guess the lesson for me is not to lose site of celebrating all that God has done in our lives.  Too often we pat ourselves on the back, each other, our investments, but how often do we thank God.  All of these festivals were around thanking God for all that he did.  Whether it was a weekly festival or one that happened once a year.  Thanking God was central.  How have you thanked God recently?

Let us pray.

Good sweet Lord, Thank you for all you have done in our lives.  Help us to give you praise always.  Help us to see you in all that we have been given.  Amen

This passage is a prayer, offered by the prophet Habbakuk, recounting during a time of national suffering God’s work in delivering the people Israel from slavery and into the Promised Land. And though the first few verses of the passage reveal a sense of awe and praise, the overall tone of the prayer is bit more muted. God’s power to destroy is described in great and disturbing detail – earth shaking, land trembling, mountains writhing; anger, wrath, fury. Though all this divine power is framed as serving God’s people over generations – vs. 13, “You came forth to save your people, to save your anointed” – the raw descriptions of God’s power makes me wonder if some of this sense of devastation didn’t hit close to home for the prophet and the people to whom he preached. That is, I wonder if this prayer is tinged with a question: could what God doled out to our enemies in years past be what we’re suffering now? Even if we continue reading the last few verses of this book, we see that the prophet is afflicted with doubt. “I tremble within; my lips quiver at the sound” (vs. 3:16).

I think of the doubt that Jesus felt in the garden, asking that his Father take this suffering away from him. Or on the cross, when Jesus prays the psalm, “My God, why have you forsaken me?” Surely Jesus knew of all the great things that God had done for his people over the generations … yet, yet in this hour, he suffered. How could any of this make sense?

One of the easiest, yet most irresponsible things we can do in response to suffering is to say, “God has a plan.” As if God inflicts suffering as part of his work in the world, and as if we could interpret such things! All we can do is cry out, with Jesus, with Habakkuk, with all the suffering of the world, recalling the great things that God has done in history, and living in hope that God continues to do great things … such as delivering his people from slavery to freedom, releasing them from captivity, and bringing them from death to life.

Rottenness enters into my bones, and my steps tremble beneath me. I wait quietly for the day of calamity to come upon the people who attack us. Though the fig tree does not blossom, and no fruit is on the vines; though the produce of the olive fails and the fields yield no food; though the flock is cut off from the fold and there is no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will exult in the God of my salvation.
- Habakkuk 3:16-18

Prayer:
Gracious heavenly Father, enter into the world’s suffering and bring about new life. Grant to all who struggle strength and patience. By your Spirit give them your hope; renew them by the inspiration of your past deeds; and come to their aid, making the mountains of sin writhe and the firmament of oppression tremble. Through your Son Jesus Christ, whose promised coming will fulfill your vision for a just creation, we pray. Amen.

Trust is a very delicate creature.  It doesn’t take a grandiose act or a lot of words to destroy it.

Trust is a important creature.  Without trust there would be no community (or at least no healthy community); marriages would not survive or thrive; friendships would have no depth and families would not be a safe haven.

Trust is a powerful creature.  It holds people, communities, marriages and friendships together when the world takes its best shot to tear these relationships apart.

Trust is a strange thing.

I mean think about it.  In Psalm 20 there is no logical, concrete reason to think or believe that God will answer us; protect us;  support us;  remember us;  give us the desires of our heart or grant our requests, but the psalmist bestows that very blessing upon the people (and us).

How can he do this?  Where does he get such confidence?

“Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed; he answers him from his holy heaven with the saving power of his right hand.“  The psalmist knows the power of the Lord and has experienced God’s faithfulness.  He has seen how some people put their trust in “stuff” (horses and chariots)…but those people fail; falling flat on their face (brought to their knees).

How can we have such confidence?  Why can we trust in the Lord?

Simply this:  God has proven his faithfulness through his words and actions (just read your Bible).  God has restored community through the death and resurrection of Jesus.  God’s power has already defeated sin, death and the power of Satan.  Therefore trust in the Lord our God is a sure and certain thing…something that will never fail.

“…we rise up and stand firm“.  Indeed we do!

Trust in the Lord with all that you are…knowing that God will indeed answer us.

Let us pray…Loving God,you have proven your love for us through the death and resurrection of your Son and our Lord, Jesus Christ.  Yet we all too often question this love…we question your faithfulness…we question your trustworthiness.  But you have always come through for us; provided for us; protected us and sustained us.  May we always seek your face and know your never failing love.  Through Jesus Christ we pray, Amen.

]]> http://manybutone.wordpress.com/2010/03/23/trust/feed/ 0 heartofapastor http://manybutone.wordpress.com/2010/03/22/preparing-the-house/ http://manybutone.wordpress.com/2010/03/22/preparing-the-house/#comments Mon, 22 Mar 2010 11:14:33 +0000 Becca MC http://manybutone.wordpress.com/?p=171 ]]> Today’s reading : Exodus 40:1-15

Over the past few years, my husband and I have moved quiet a few times – we have lived in 4 different homes during the last 3 1/2 years of marriage.  Every time we have moved I think about how nice our new place will be, where various furniture will go and when we will have our first guest.  For me a house is not a home until it has been christened with it’s first guest.

Before we even moved into our current home, the church parsonage, I was already thinking about the dessert party that we would have as a house warming and what food I would make.  And at the house warming, as we showed people around and laughter and conversation filled the rooms, the house was anointed to be our new home.  With the welcoming of guest our house became not just an ordinary house but a sacred place, a home.

God commanded the tabernacle, the place of worship for the Israelites, to be anointed.  This symbolized that the tabernacle was a holy place, along with the altar of burnt offering , the basin, and Aaron and his sons.

In much the same way, a few weeks before my house warming, I was anointed during ordination.  But more importantly, we were all anointed at our baptisms.  We were marked with the cross of Christ forever.  We have been anointed, we have been marked as holy.

Each one of us have been marked to be not just people but children of God.

Let us pray, God of life, thank you for anointing us, for making us holy.  Help us remember that we are sacred, marked with your cross and claimed as daughters and sons of your eternal promise.  Amen

John 12:1-11

What was Mary thinking?  What was Mary feeling?

Mary had so many things going against her, she must of been on an emotional rollercoaster.  Her brother had just died but come back to life, her sister was pressuring her to stop listening to Jesus and do some more work around the house (again), Judas was yelling at her for wasting precious perfume.  So what was going on in her head?

I would like to present a possible answer.  From time to time, for a better understanding of the Gospel reading for a Sunday I like to play out a character’s  thoughts and feelings.  This is a version for Mary:

Hello I am Mary – Mary of Bethany.  Some of you might know me better as Mary the little sister of Martha and Lazarus. The three of us made a good team – even though we are all very different from one another. My brother Lazarus is intelligent, successful, and highly respected in the community, he is even best friends with Jesus!

Martha is always very organized, she is always thinking of the other person, she wants to make sure that if we have someone over at the house the they would always feel welcome and loved.  She was a great cook and she kept the house spotless.

Then there’s me, Mary. Instead of thinking with my head, I think with my heart.  Many people have looked down upon me because I am not as smart or as talented as Martha and Lazarus.  I do not think I am stupid but some people have called me that.  I just don’t really think too much about what I do, I see something  and I go for it!

Other people call me lazy but I think of myself as a dreamer.

Lazarus is always bringing people home for a meal, important people.  I would often sneak into the dining  room to listen in on the conversations.  Don’t worry, I know my place, as a woman I was not allowed to share with people what I thought or what I felt.  Once Lazarus brought over a leader in the community, he was talking about some of the changes the wanted to happen in our little town of Bethany.  I did not like what he was saying, but I kept my mouth shut —  I did not want to upset or embarrass my brother.

But when Lazarus brought Jesus home for dinner the first time, I was amazed at his wisdom and his gentleness. He talked about the things of God as though he really knew God. I did not only want to be in the room, but I wanted to sit at his feet and look into his eyes when he talked.  It was amazing!  My heart could not stop pounding!

When I did this it made Martha  very unhappy.  She was especially unhappy with me the day that I sat down with all the men and listened to Jesus. She wanted me to help with the meal – to do what was expected of a woman. But I wanted to hear Jesus!

Jesus’ disciples put up with me because they didn’t want to offend Lazarus who was a good friend of Jesus, we also provided money and a place for them when they were in town.  I felt that  Jesus didn’t seem to mind that I hung around listening to him, he of course welcomed everybody!

Jesus spent many hours in our home, often teaching his disciples and talking about God. He became a close friend to our family.

So it was natural that when Lazarus became ill, we sent for Jesus. But he didn’t come right away and Lazarus died. Martha and I were so upset.  Four days after we buried my brother Jesus showed up. “Why didn’t you come? If you’d been here, he would not have died,” we said.  We were mad at Jesus.

But instead of giving me an answer, Jesus went with us to the tomb and wept with us. Then he called out, “Lazarus, come out!” Still wrapped in burial cloths, my brother came out of the tomb – alive! Only moments before Jesus had said to Martha: “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.”

Now my brother who was dead, was alive! Jesus – the resurrection and the life. It was at that moment that, a lot of things Jesus had said began to make more sense. Jesus had spoken several times about his death.  I did not know what he was talking about.  It all seemed a little weird to me.   But the last time, he was so clear about it that it seemed he meant it would happen soon.

Jesus said, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life.”

Jesus said that so clearly, but we never really understood what he was talking about.  But now I began to see. He was making his last trip to Jerusalem. He was on his way to his death. He showed us his power over death when he brought Lazarus back to life. He had resurrection power. He was the life. Yet he would be put to death – just as he said.

That brings back to today.  Jesus was coming over for dinner and I was excited to see him.  Once he came to the door I could instantly see a different look in his face.  I gave him a hug and this time he seems a little cold and distant.   At dinner I could see a difference in Jesus. The dinner was given in his honor, yet he wasn’t celebrating. He seemed sad, as though he knew this would be the last time Martha would prepare a meal for him. It would be the last time he gathered with these people.

I could not help it, I went into the back room and I grabbed the bottle of nard that we had been saving.  We saved our money up for so long to get it, we were waiting to use it on a special occasion -  what could be more special than this?  To prepare Jesus for his death.  So I decided to honor Jesus – in my own way. Nard is an expensive and fragrant oil often used for anointing people to honor them, but also used to prepare a body for burial. I was using it for both purposes.

I poured it on  Jesus’ head first, it ran down onto his beard and robe as well. So he carried that fragrance of nard to the tomb.

As I was doing it I had second thoughts,  everyone, including Martha was looking at me as if I lost my mind.  I started to become embarrassed.    Then Judas yelled at me for “wasted” this expensive oil and if that was not enough I realized I never put my hair back so I began to use it to wipe Jesus’ feet.

I know that a proper woman would never let her hair down in the presence of men.  My actions were that of  a slave, a servant, who washed the feet of guests and then dried them. I knew that, and I accepted that because I was a servant of Jesus Christ, I humbly wiped my Lord’s feet.

My actions were also those of one who was losing a dear friend, who was preparing his body for burial. The silence in the room was deafening. No one knew what to say. Well, except for Judas, who said I should have sold it and given the money to the poor.

But Jesus understood my actions. He knew that I knew he was going to Jerusalem to die. He knew I had finally put it together and knew this was what had to happen. I didn’t want him to die. But I had to let Jesus go. So I anointed his body with this fragrant perfume for death.

He said that my brother would rise again – and he did. He said he was the resurrection and the life – and I believed him. Whatever happened, I trusted Jesus.

Of all the people in that room, Jesus and I were the only two who knew that he would be put to death very soon.

• The disciples sat and listened to Jesus, but they still didn’t understand.
• Lazarus sat in grateful silence, having been given back his life by Jesus.
• Judas squirmed uneasily and thought about money.
• My dear sister Martha lovingly fed and served them.

And I – I worshiped my Lord. I gave him the greatest gift I could – the gift of an understanding heart – for he knew that I knew what was to come.

______________________

Dear God, We know what is to come, your death and resurrection.  In the business of our world, we pray that we take the time to sit at your feet – to listen to your words and to anoint you as our beloved.  We ask that we have the courage to stand up for you and to honor you even if everyone else is looking down upon us.  That this week we are able to follow you from the celebration on Palm Sunday to the sorrow of Good Friday and back again.

Amen

Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him.  But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what he had done.  So the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the council, and said, ‘What are we to do? This man is performing many signs.  If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and destroy both our holy place^* and our nation.’   But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, ‘You know nothing at all!   You do not understand that it is better for you to have one man die for the people than to have the whole nation destroyed.’   He did not say this on his own, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus was about to die for the nation,  and not for the nation only, but to gather into one the dispersed children of God.   So from that day on they planned to put him to death.Jesus therefore no longer walked about openly among the Jews, but went from there to a town called Ephraim in the region near the wilderness; and he remained there with the disciples.

Now the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went up from the country to Jerusalem before the Passover to purify themselves.  They were looking for Jesus and were asking one another as they stood in the temple, ‘What do you think? Surely he will not come to the festival, will he?’  Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that anyone who knew where Jesus was should let them know, so that they might arrest him.

John 11:45-57

I have often heard people say “Jesus was never a political figure.”  One could probably argue one way or another, but it is hard to dismiss that the reading for today is deeply political.  Caiaphas’ answer regarding Jesus shows how political Jesus’ presence was.  This was a political power grab.

The Pharisees and the Scribes saw their power slipping right out of their hands due to what Jesus was doing.  After all, he was breaking Levitical laws, he was sitting with people he should not be sitting with, and he was welcoming those that society deemed unclean and unworthy to be people.  They just didn’t like it because it was undermining their authority and their power was at risk.

Caiaphas’ answer: Kill one for the good of the nation.  Of course, we see the irony in his statement.  Jesus’ death would be for the good of the nation and not only that nation, but nations to come.  But, obviously this is not what Caiaphas meant.  It was sad really.  Here was a high holy man, who was missing the Savior walking right by him, all because he was staring at himself and his own power.

Well, we could mock, but how often do we not let Jesus in for our own pride?  How often do we not allow God’s light to shine in our darkness thinking we can hide?  How often do we protect our own “nation” so to speak?

Christ though continues to walk to Jerusalem and comes out of hiding.  He knows he must be killed, so that we might live.  This is what he did for us for the good of the nation of God’s people.  He gave up his power and set aside his crown, so that we might be lifted up.  For this we give thanks.

Heavenly Lord, We can never imagine how much you have given up on our behalf.  For that we thank you and give you praise always.  Help break down the walls that we might build up between ourselves and neighbor and between ourselves and you.  Help us see past our own private palaces to see the true Kingdom of God.  Amen

Today the church commemorates Joseph of Nazareth, a descendant of King David, a carpenter and builder (we might say construction worker today).  Joseph was Mary’s husband, (probably arranged from an early age) and functioned as Jesus’ human stepfather through his childhood.  The last we hear of Joseph in any of the Gospels is in Luke’s account of Jesus in the temple as a boy (age 12-13).  He is also mentioned in Matthew and John as people question whether Jesus could possibly be Joseph’s son.  It turns out that questioning the legitimacy of someone’s birth circumstances is indeed a very old tactic to discredit them

The bigger question for Christians is not about Joseph’s genetic relationship to Jesus, but really whether he is important in the story at all, especially since Jesus’ public ministry is clearly grounded in a profound sense that the God of the Torah is also his Abba.  There are apocryphal stories of Jesus as a child that feature him doing some astoundingly divine and yet childlike things, making birds out of dirt, levitating or flying, and zapping a neighborhood bully with a bolt of retribution.  Does a child with such power need a foster father?

Yet, our affirmation of the full humanity of Jesus means that like all other humans, he grew, learned, changed and experienced his life as all children do.  Studies have shown how vital positive adults are in the lives of children.  Matthew’s witness places the responsibility for the flight to Egypt and handling their stay there with Joseph.  In some small part, Joseph’s patient willingness to be a dad to a child that was not his own, and to provide the love, protection and guidance needed was a harbinger of the longstanding Christian ministry of adoption and caring for orphans.

That is the power of all parenting, both birth and adoptive, that the child may surpass the parents precisely because of what they give to the child.  For Mary, what an honor to give life in the flesh to the life-force that spawned the galaxies.  For Joseph, what an honor and a privilege to be the protector and the rescuer of the one who would rescue and save us all.  God’s ability to work through the most ordinary people, and to do the extraordinary amazes me every day.

Let us pray:

Loving God, for Joseph and for all parents who foster, adopt and protect the children who were not born to them, but who were entrusted to them, we give you thanks.  Go with them and with all parents this day, who in sharing your unconditional love with a child, reveal the might of your love for your own Son, Jesus Christ, Our Lord. Amen.

“On their return the apostles told Jesus all they had done.” Today’s Gospel text beings with the excitement, perhaps giddiness, of the twelve returning to Jesus with great tales of healing the sick, casing out demons, and proclaiming the Kingdom of God. I can imagine their reports: “Jesus, you should have seen the look on her face when I healed her son!” or, “Hey guys, I can’t believe it! I opened my mouth and it was like God’s Spirit spoke through me!” It must have brought Jesus great joy to hear the chatter at that reunion. Perhaps that’s why Jesus took them privately to Bethsaida, to debrief their first solo missions and share in the wonder of what God was doing.

But their “private” retreat wasn’t private for long. The crowds learned where Jesus and his disciples were heading, and they followed. Jesus “welcomed them, and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who needed to be cured.” And as the day was coming to a close, the apostles urged Jesus to send the crowd away, so that they could get something to eat and find someplace to sleep.

“You give them something to eat,” Jesus said.

We can be forgiven for assuming that a band of preachers who had just healed the sick and proclaimed the good news of God would be up to the challenge of feeding thousands of people with just a five loaves of bread and two fish. What’s bread and fish compared to sickness and human frailty? But the apostles balked. Though they had the faith and power to heal intangible sickness and to lead people to faith through preaching good news, when it came to tangible, in-plain-sight things such as bread and fish, they were impotent. The calculus of scarcity was too much for them. They clearly didn’t have enough food for such a crowd, nor money or time to go and buy food thousands of people.

Like the apostles, one minute we’re faithful, performing wonderful works in Jesus’ name, and the next we’re doubtful, able to do little more than say, “there’s not enough. We can’t do it.”

This story ends with Jesus blessing the bread and fish, and giving it to his disciples to distribute to the people. All are fed, and more is left over than the apostles even had at the beginning.

God sends us off to do impossible things. When we balk, he ignores our excuses and sends us out again, giving us what we need to carry out his mission. Look in your basket, see what he’s given you. All you need to do is share.

Let us pray:
Dear heavenly Father, our faith wanes, but yours does not. We tire, but you are always awake. Keep ever present with us, O God, and let your abundant grace be known – through us and in spite of us. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.